President: Attack Near Slovakia Confirms Urgent Need to Amend Armed Forces Act

Bratislava, 14 May (TASR) - Another incident involving a drone attack near Slovakia's eastern border only confirms the urgent need to draft legislation that will allow the Armed Forces to intervene effectively, even in peacetime, against objects crossing our border either by accident or intentionally, President Peter Pellegrini has stated in response to an attack by Russian drones in western Ukraine on Wednesday (13 May). "For this reason, I firmly believe that the round-table discussion that started at the Presidential Palace and continued at the General Staff of the Slovak Armed Forces will convince political parties across the spectrum that this is a very urgent issue, and I trust that MPs will prepare a legislative amendment as soon as possible," read Pellegrini's statement provided by the President's Office to TASR. On Wednesday, Zakarpattia Oblast in western Ukraine faced the biggest Russian attack since the start of the invasion in February 2022. According to data from the Ukrainian armed forces, eleven Shahed- and Geran-type unmanned aerial vehicles entered Zakarpattia's airspace during the air raid. Most of them were shot down or disabled by the Ukrainian air-defence forces and electronic warfare units. The drones were reportedly intercepted in Ukrainian airspace just 50 kilometres from the Slovak border. In response to the attack, Slovakia closed all crossings at the border with Ukraine for security reasons. jrg/df